In this article, my intention is to stimulate your interest in going below the surface to answer some uncomfortable questions. To start us off, what is your vision for success? Everyone desires to be successful but are you clear on what you want to achieve as a person, company, a nation or as people?

If the answer is no, then there is no amount of assistance or support that can help you achieve what you do not know.

Asking the right kinds of questions is at the heart of defining and achieving your vision for success. “Good leaders come up with answers, but great leaders ask the right questions.” said Jim Collins, the author of Good to Great. I have come to give much value to questions than answers for the simple reason that they send our brains to work and cause us to move and to grow.

I recall an incident in 2012, during one meeting regarding an independent evaluation for the pilot phase (2007-2012) of the One UN Reform in Rwanda. For those who might not know, UN Reform was introduced to make the UN interventions work better, reduce duplication, increase coherence and reduce transaction cost. Key indicators and targets of the reform were presented as achieved and the conclusion was that the UN Reform strategy is the way to go.

In the audience were staff from various UN agencies, the Government and Civil Society Organizations. During Q&A session, a staff from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MINECOFIN) made a very important observation.